cynarion's Carrion Crown PbP

Professor Lorrimor, the renowned investigator and arcanist, has died. You came to his home in the town of Ravengro to pay your respects, but quickly discovered there was more to the wily old man's death than met the eye...

You make your way through the grounds, around the side of the prison. The execution block remains tangled up in the weeds where Dragomir threw it from the balcony above, but there is no movement as you make your way gingerly past.

You climb the steps up to the balcony, wary of the weapon rack, but once again everything seems silent.

Finally, you head in through the door, finding yourselves in the familiar surroundings of the western cell block. Nothing appears to have been disturbed since your last visit, as far as you can tell.

Items of interest:
--the chained remains in the cell down the end of the cell block (see post here).
--the small unexplored room outside which Septimus is currently standing.
--the eastern cell block and the other facilities at that end of the floor.

Reminder: doors here have warped over the years. It requires a DC 13 Strength check as a standard action to open a closed wooden door, which comes off its hinges as a result. Where they aren't already broken, cell doors require a DC 20 strength check to break open, which may be reduced if you employ some sort of leverage.

Karrik, once again outfitted for a fight, gives the place a sour-faced look, "This place didn't become any more inviting in the interim." He notices the closed door next to Septimus. "We should at least make a cursory inspection of that room... I don't enjoy the idea of leaving this place's denizen's at our backs."

He begins to move toward the door before he stops, remembering the events of their previous attempt on the prison. "Rajuna, do you mind giving this door a good inspection before we open it up?"

The door clatters off its hinges and somersaults into the room beyond, caroming off what turns out to be a ladder leading up to a trapdoor. This room was clearly once used as an access point to the roof area above.

Rose starts as Rajuna kicks the door down, having become distracted looking about. Chills still run down her spine from between the memories of her previous encounter with the Piper and the dream from early morning. "At least if the doors should decide to attack us, they may have some justification for it."

Raj looks to Rose, "Trust me, this door had it comin'. It kilt me sister and stole ma' dog."

The smile fades from the thief's face as he carefully regards the ladder and the trapdoor. He addresses the team while he scans the room and ladder for signs of rotting boards.

"So maybe the building hisself dropped a gargoyle on Doc. Or maybe one of these Way people did it. If so, they may have come up this way. So let's be cautious where we step and look carefully. This might be our best shot to find clues. Theron, you're sharp-eyed. Wanna join me here so you can see things before we disturb anything?"

I am indeed assuming caution in searching for traps, so no need to worry about including it, as you say. I am assuming you're taking 10; if you want to take 20 instead, let me know--I'm also happy to assume taking 10 when moving through corridors and taking 20 when opening doors or other such usually suspect things.

Finding nothing untoward in the room or on the ladder, Raj climbs carefully up and pushes on the trapdoor.

It doesn't budge.

Try as he might, he can't move it without putting all his strength into it. (In other words, you'll need to make a Strength check to open it; to save back-and-forth and endless replies where I say "Nope, not good enough", the DC is 22.)

Rose points out that unlike the other doors you have encountered around Harrowstone, there appears to be no give at all in the trapdoor--anywhere. If it were locked, or just stuck, you'd expect it to move a little at least somewhere on its surface. But the entire thing is stuck fast--meaning it must have something heavy on it on the other side.

"So maybe the building hisself dropped a gargoyle on Doc. Or maybe one of these Way people did it. If so, they may have come up this way. So let's be cautious where we step and look carefully. This might be our best shot to find clues. Theron, you're sharp-eyed. Wanna join me here so you can see things before we disturb anything?"

If anyone wants to go with Detect Magic or somesuch, Raj will wait on that before heading up the ladder...

Detect Magic? Do you want to bring the building down on us!? D:

"Good call, I'll join you," Theron says and moves forward so that he can be ready to head up with Raj after the trap door is opened.

By standing back from the ladder a foot or so and providing Dragomir with a stable platform--in other words, his shoulder--Raj helps Dragomir to force the trapdoor open.

Unfortunately Dragomir is promptly battered by a torrent of small stones that pour in through the now-open hatch. There are enough of them to reach Lem and Theron as well--although thankfully their force is much-reduced.

Dragomir, I have you at a total of +0 to your unarmed attack from the ground: +2 (BAB), +1 (inspire courage), +4 (Str), -4 (prone), -2 (grappled), -1 (power attack). You will be relieved to know you still hit anyway--and you shouldn't have to roll for concealment given the thing's sitting on you.

Conversely, inspire courage gives you a +1 bonus to damage for a total of 10 damage. : )

###

The giant stirge attacking Dragomir squeals--you hear a dull, wet sound as Dragomir drives a mailed fist into it over and over, but it is still alive.

Suffering a small fit of coughin from the dust, Rose looks to see the two creatures assaulting her friends. "Another nightmare or...?" She decides to act, infusing her blade with eldritch energy and sending an icy ray into the room first before stepping in to strike.

Well, if this isn't what Point Blank Shot + Precise Shot is made for, I don't know what is. Wish I had quick-draw so I could get out of there though, lol.

Theron, coughing from the dust and dirt, mentally chides himself for not being ready for something to come out of the hatch and draws his bow. Squinting through the dust, he takes aim at the Stirge that's clinging to Dragomir and lets his shot fly at point blank range. The arrow almost misses, but still buries itself deeply into the blood sucking parasite.

Similarly, your longsword to me looks like it should be +1 (BAB), +3 (Str), +1 (inspire courage), +1 (arcane enhancement), -2 (spell combat) for a total of +4.

Either way, the spell misses and the longsword hits and crits, so it's not a big deal. : )

Will be back this evening (in around 4-5 hours) to sort out what's going on. Fair to say that the giant stirge on Raj is looking pretty unwell, though. Both are still alive, I'm pretty sure (without doing my calculations).

Rajuna shields his head as the stones rain down. He barely clears the dust from his eyes with a wipe from his sleeve when the stirge buries its proboscis in his shoulder. The thief offers an odd imprecation, "Applesauce!" as fangs spring from both of his fists. He jams a blade into the beast sucking his blood.

With no little amount of frustration, Karrik realizes he has no good way of helping his teammates without also harming them and does the only thing he can think of to be helpful. He readies his blade, peering up and down the halls to make sure the fight in the ladder-room is the only one they have to deal with currently.

Round 1
Perception 1d20 ⇒ 2
FREE: 5' step to a more defensive/protective spot for Septimus and others.
STD: Ready an action to attack any threats that comes into his threatened squares.

Rose fires a blue ray of energy at the stirge attacking Raj, which misses the pair but causes a patch of frost to spring up on the wall behind them. She then sweeps into the room, her longsword flicking out and severing three of the stirge's legs--which gives Raj enough room to get one of his daggers out and plunge it into the side of the stirge's head. It flops to the ground, twitching, but most definitely dead.

On the other side of the small room, Theron draws back his bow and lets an arrow fly, the buzzing noise of the fletching in the air seeming overly loud in the small space. The arrow slams into the stirge's thorax, but it doesn't break off from feeding on Dragomir.

Sorry Dragomir, I know it may have been more effective for Theron to just run out of the room to let Karrik take a swing at the thing, but it just felt wrong for Theron to leave without doing something XD

There seemed to be some sort of mechanism, some sort of strange mental tick that made him completely disregard the weapon-- a longsword, forged for killing other creatures-- in his hand, and instead search for a sharp rock. Walter reached down, palmed a rock and hurled it as hard as he could at the hideous creature.

FWIW, I texted Septimus and told him he's up. He said he's going to try to get a post in but to tell everyone that he's going to be buried at work for awhile. I don't think he'd mind if someone rolled a "rock chucking" attack for him.